6 tech innovations debuting at the World Cup

From a geometrically ‘magical’ ball to a brain-controlled exoskeleton

The battle between 32 soccer teams for the World Cup title will draw fans worldwide to TV screens for a month-long series of showdowns, starting Thursday in São Paulo, Brazil. With millions expected to watch, it’s a massive stage to showcase innovation. Here’s a look at some technology that this World Cup will feature for the first time.

It all starts with the ball, and what’s new for the 2014 tournament is that it will have six identical panels, each with four “fingers” that interlock. Usually, a ball is made of 12, 16 or sometimes 32 panels.

The more seams a ball has, the higher the chance of imperfections — and that means more water intake, less durability and more inconsistency when hit, explains Adidas, official ball maker for the World Cup since 1970.

Coming up with a design that cut the number of panels in half was “almost geometrical magic,” Adidas says. The effort appears to have paid off, as the long, swooping seams result in more accurate shots and passes, according to a University of Tsukuba study.

The ball “strikes more true. It feels like it’s going where you want it go,” Vancouver Whitecaps player Jordan Harvey told the Globe and Mail earlier this year.

Called the “Brazuca”, the new ball also comes in a retail version that sells for $160.

-- Carla Mozée

Reuters

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For the first time ever in the World Cup, technology will be used to determine whether a ball crossed the goal line.

GoalControl-4D uses 14 high-speed cameras mounted on the stadium’s roof or catwalk, with seven of them monitoring the two goal mouths. They’re connected to an image-processing computer system that filters out everything on the pitch except the ball, and sensors are able to track the ball’s movement to less than two-tenths of an inch. When it crosses the goal line, match officials are notified by a vibration and message sent to a wristwatch. Replays are also available.

While goal-line technology has been around a while, its use in soccer has been a controversial subject, with many fans passionately opposed. But an incident at the last World Cup, where a genuine goal wasn’t seen or given by the referee, persuaded FIFA President Sepp Blatter it was time for a change.

“It is obvious that after the experiences so far at this (2010) World Cup, it would be a nonsense not to reopen the file on goal-line technology,” said Blatter told the Associated Press at the time.

Dirk Broichhausen, managing director of the system’s maker GoalControl, told the AP last year it would cost an estimated 200,000 euros ($270,627) to install it at the 12 World Cup stadiums, and another €3,000 to run it at each match.

Sony Professional Europe

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In 2014, some World Cup matches will be shot in 4K — the ultra-HD television format that’s touted as delivering an image four times as sharp as with the 1080p HD found on standard TV sets.

The July 13 final and two other games will be recorded in the ultra-high definition format by Sony
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which makes 4K production equipment, for a promo film — but they won’t be broadcast live.

And while the BBC won’t be broadcasting live in 4K, it will be running a trial. Streams of three matches in Brazil will be sent via satellite to the U.K., where they will be decoded for viewing on regular retail TV sets. Meanwhile, Telefonica’s
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Vivo unit in Brazil reportedly will distribute 4K coverage over its fiber-optic network to a group of customers with compatible receivers.

Electronics manufacturers are hoping consumers will latch onto ultra-HD as a reason to upgrade their TV sets. While 4K content has yet to become mainstream, Netflix
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has begun offering its “House of Cards” drama series and a number of nature documentaries in the format.

Getty Images

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Vanishing spray — which resembles shaving cream — will make its World Cup debut. Referees can whip out the aerosol cans when they want to mark where players should stand during a free kick or other move.

The white line made by the water-based spray tends to last about a minute, according to its maker, 9.15 Fair Play Limit. The Argentinian company’s name is a nod to the regulation 9.15 meters between the player taking a free kick and a wall of opponents trying to block it.

Walk Again Project

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The kick that’ll been seen ‘round the world at the tournament’s opening ceremony will be made by a paralyzed teenager. The teen, whose name has yet to be made public, will wear an exoskeleton set in motion by the brain using wireless electrodes attached to his or her head.

“It’s the first time an exoskeleton has been controlled by brain activity and offered feedback to the patients,” Miguel Nicolelis, a neuroscientist at Duke University, told Agence France-Presse.

The kick will be part of the World Cup’s 25-minute opening ceremony in São Paulo. The first game, between host Brazil and Croatia, will start roughly an hour and 15 minutes later.

With a potential reach of millions of viewers, the exoskeleton demonstration will showcase the work of neuroscientists, physicians, engineers and others on the technology, aimed at giving full-body mobility in paralyzed individuals. Nicolelis — who hails from Brazil — coordinates the project, which is backed by the Walk Again research consortium.

“Doing a demonstration in a stadium is something very much outside our routine in robotics. It’s never been done before,” he told AFP.

Captiv8 Promotions

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It’s hard to forget the soundtrack of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. When thousands of fans blew into those Vuvuzela noise makers, it sounded as if millions of bees were swarming the fields.

For Brazil’s World Cup, the official noise maker is the caxirola. The horn-shaped plastic percussion instrument, designed by Brazilian musician Carlinhos Brown, is filled with small, synthetic beads that make a rattling sound when shaken.

Sure, you can buy a caxirola from FIFA’s website for $14, but you can’t bring it with you into the World Cup stadiums. Brazil’s sports ministry has banned them over concerns they’ll be thrown onto the field, as happened at a game last year held in Salvador, Bahia last year.

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